Thursday, July 7, 2000

A Special ‘Awards Edition’ of

DreamWorks’ Five-Time Oscar Winner And $330 Million Worldwide Box-Office Phenomenon

AMERICAN BEAUTY

Makes Its Sell-Through VHS And DVD Debut On October 24, 2000

-- DVD Features More Than Three and a Half Hours of Bonus Programming
And Dolby Digital and DTS Sound On The Same Disc --

GLENDALE, CA -- American Beauty, the year’s most critically acclaimed film and winner of five Academy Awards including Best Picture, makes its sell-through VHS and DVD debut on October 24, 2000. This multi-award winning, universally celebrated film will be released to own as a special "Awards Edition." Both The Awards Edition VHS and DVD include an insightful storyboard feature with commentary by Academy Award-winning Director Sam Mendes and Oscar-winning Director of Cinematography Conrad L. Hall, and a "Making of" featurette. With more than three and a half hours of bonus programming, American Beauty: The Awards Edition DVD is designed to provide an insider’s look at the award-winning movie. Featuring Dolby Digital and DTS Sound on the same disc, American Beauty: The Awards Edition DVD also includes a DVD Rom component offering access to exciting on-line events, as well as the ability to scroll through the Academy Award winning screenplay as the movie plays. The DVD is priced at $26.99 (SRP). American Beauty: The Awards Edition VHS is priced at $24.99 (SRP). Pre-book for both versions is September 11, 2000.

American Beauty: The Awards Edition DVD and VHS will be supported by a comprehensive, strategically layered national marketing program including a multi-million-dollar campaign incorporating high-profile and event programming on network television. The campaign also will feature radio and Internet promotions. The wickedly funny film will receive additional marketing support from an extensive national public relations program and trailering on Universal Studios’ Pitch Black and U-571. For in-store display, DreamWorks is providing 24, 48 and 96-piece merchandisers in different configurations to accommodate specific retailer product mixes.

The sell-through release of American Beauty will launch DreamWorks’ national consumer marketing campaign designed to drive sales of the studio’s entire DVD and video catalogue. Both the VHS and DVD will feature an instantly redeemable coupon good for $3 off with the purchase of all other DreamWorks’ titles. An extensive advertising and publicity campaign will support this program.

AMERICAN BEAUTY: THE AWARDS EDITION DVD FEATURES

Marking the highly-anticipated DVD, the spectacular American Beauty: The Awards Edition DVD contains the following bonus programs:

• An insightful and compelling Director and Writer’s commentary with Sam Mendes and scriptwriter Alan Ball.
• Exclusive Storyboard feature with commentary by director Sam Mendes and director of photography Conrad L. Hall.
• "The Making of American Beauty" featurette
• Access the screenplay via a DVD ROM feature that will enable viewers to watch the movie on one side of their screen and scroll through the Academy Award winning screenplay on the other side of the screen.
• Production Notes
• Two theatrical trailers
• Cast and Crew Biographies

American Beauty: The Awards Edition VHS features include:

• Exclusive storyboard feature with Director’s commentary (Mendes and director of photography Conrad L. Hall)
• "The Making of American Beauty" featurette

American Beauty features exceptional performances from a stellar cast headlined by this year’s Best Actor Academy Award winner Kevin Spacey (The Usual Suspects, LA Confidential, Seven) and Best Actress Oscar nominee Annette Bening (In Dreams, The Grifters, The American President). American Beauty’s powerful ensemble cast also includes Thora Birch (Patriot Games, Clear and Present Danger), Wes Bentley (Beloved), Mena Suvari (American Pie), Peter Gallagher (sex, lies and videotape, Short Cuts, The Player) and Chris Cooper (The Horse Whisperer, A Time to Kill).

The critical acclaim for American Beauty was universal. Domestically, it was featured on 277 Top Ten lists, named by more than 65 critics as Best Picture of the Year, and received three Golden Globe Awards. In addition to its five Academy and Golden Globe Awards, American Beauty received Best Film honors from over 65 Critics Associations, including the prestigious National Board of Review and The Broadcast Film Critics Association. American Beauty was also recognized internationally by top critics, and critics groups, and won six BAFTA Awards, Great Britain’s equivalent to the Oscar.

Not only did the cast and crew principals receive accolades from the top industry organizations, but virtually everyone involved in the making of American Beauty also received kudos from their industry peers, including Best Director for Sam Mendes from The Director’s Guild of America; Outstanding Cinematography for Conrad L. Hall from the American Society of Cinematographers; Motion Picture Producers of the Year Awards for Bruce Cohen and Dan Jinks from the Producer’s Guild of America; Best Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen for Alan Ball from the Writer’s Guild of America; Screen Actors Guild Awards for Spacey, Bening and ensemble cast; and Best Costume Design for Film for Julie Weiss from the Costume Designers Guild.

AMERICAN BEAUTY FILM SYNOPSIS

Marking the feature film directorial debut of award-winning theatre director Sam Mendes (The Blue Room, Cabaret), this funny, moving and shocking journey through life in suburban America follows the trials and tribulations of Lester (Spacey) and Carolyn (Bening), an upper-middle class couple whose marriage - and lives - are slowly unraveling. Lester’s wife hates him, his daughter Jane regards him with contempt, and his boss is positioning him for the ax. So Lester decides to make a few changes in his life; the freer he gets, the happier he gets, which is even more maddening to his wife and daughter. But Lester is about to learn that the ultimate freedom comes at the ultimate price.

DreamWorks SKG was formed in October 1994, by its three principal partners, Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen - as a single company to produce live-action motion pictures; animated feature films and television programs; network, syndicated and cable television programming; records; books; toys; consumer products and interactive entertainment.

American Beauty

• DVD/VHS Price: DVD $26.99 (SRP), VHS $24.99 (SRP)
• Pre-Book Date: September 12, 2000
• Street Date: October 24, 2000
• Running Time: 122 minutes
• MPAA Rating: R
• Closed Captioned

SOURCE: DreamWorks SKG